550 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY The Disciple church was organized about the time of many of the other Christian churches in Trumbull County. The overseers were Daniel Hosford and Silas Jones. The deacons were George W. Dean and Thomas Stanley. The church edifice is at East Mecca and was built in 1868. CHAPTER XLVII.—MESOPOTAMIA. THE NAME.—SPERRY FAMILY.-THE GUILDS.-TRACY.-PIONEER DEVELOPMENT.-FIRST TEACHING AND PREACHING. Number 7, in the 5th range, was organized in 1819, under the name "Mesopotamia." It is a pity that the early settlers did not use some Indian name, some name that was characteristic of the vicinity, or some New England name of family or town. Mesopotamia, meaning between two rivers, never did and never has seemed appropriate. However, the people of the present day are not to blame for the name any more than is the swarthy, stout, short girl who is named "Lillie." The township is one of the most beautiful in Trumbull County. It is rolling, is rural in every way, has beautiful forests, the homes are in good repair, and everything about it seems prosperous. Here was the early home of John Stark Edwards, the first recorder of Trumbull County, of whom we have read much in earlier chapters. His father, Pierpont Edwards, of New Haven, owned most of the land, and the son acted as his agent for the sale of the same. Unlike many of the townships in the south, the early settlers were mostly from New England. John Stark Edwards visited the township in 1799, and upon his return home offered to give one hundred acres of land to the first five men who should purchase land and bring their families to the new country to live. He likewise offered fifty acres of land to each of the first five single men who would purchase and live upon land in that township. In 1806 he gave the land for the present park. In 1800 Hezekiah Sperry, his children, Alphias, Martha and Cynthia, arrived in Mesopotamia and built a log cabin. It will be seen by this date that Mesopotamia was settled almost as early as Warren. The next year he went back to Woodbridge., Connecticut, and brought out his wife and the rest of the children. He had thirteen in all. Five of the daughters and three - 551 - 552 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY of the sons married, and all of the sons lived and died in the township. Captain Sperry built the first frame house in the township. The mother lived there twenty-six years, and the father thirty-two. Although this family did not suffer unusual hardships, and its members were moderately happy, yet with so large a family there were a number of sorrows. The youngest son, Lucius, who never married, contracted typhiod fever during his service in the war of 1812, was brought home and died. Three of his sisters contracted the disease and died also. Hannah, the eldest daughter, married Zeri Sperry and lived in Middlefield. While she was visiting her father in Mesopotamia her own house was burned and her husband perished in the flames. She afterwards married a Mr. Lyman, of Windham, and outlived all her family, reaching the extreme age of ninety-four. The second family to arrive was Otis and Lois Guild and their family. Their Connecticut home was Sharon, and they came to the Western Reserve in 1800, moving to Mesopotamia in 1801. Lois Guild kept one of the most hospitable homes in northern Trumbull County. Writers who followed her speak of her bounteous suppers as being remembered by all Mesopotamia people. She was the sole possessor "of a red broadcloth cloak, by which she was known far and near." When the family came they had four children, and three daughters were born to them afterwards. It is supposed that Charlotte. who was born the year of their arrival, was the first white child born in the township, but there is some uncertainty about this. because a daughter of Dr. Clark was born about the same time. The youngest child of this family, Aurelia, was born at the exact time that friends were laying away in old mother earth her little sister whose name she bore. This second Aurelia lived to be eighteen years old, but for half her lifetime she was blind. Mrs. J. M. Laird records in the "Memorial to Pioneer Women of the Western Reserve" the fact that Charlotte Guild built a monument for herself of good deeds that she was very industrious, could card and spin, taught school, was fond of books, was an expert horsewoman. She married Flavel Sheldon in 1821, at which time Rev. Joseph Curtis preached a sermon taking for his text, "Come, for all things are now ready." She was often seen riding a horse so spirited that most women and some men could not bear to ride, and in front of her she carried two children, with another on behind. HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY - 553 Seth Tracy and his wife, Sylphinia Hawley, with six children, a daughter being born to them after they arrived, made the third family to settle in Mesopotamia. Their home was Pittsfield, Massachusetts. As was usual, Mr. Tracy preceded the family, located his farm, and brought his family with him in 1801. They came by wagon from Pittsfield to Whitestown, New York. Here they took boats and proceeded as far as Niagara. The boats were then hauled around the falls, and they proceeded on their way via Lake Erie. They rowed up the Grand river as far as Windsor, going the rest of the way by land. They slept under bark put on poles, as did hundreds of other emigrants, until their cabin was done. The men chopped some trees, stirred the virgin forest with pick axes, dropped corn into these holes, but had no further time for cultivation. Their land was near the present center of Mesopotamia and there was seven hundred acres of it. About five years after their arrival the first orchard of the township was set out on Mr. Tracy's land, and a few of these trees still stand. Mrs. Tracy possessed a very sweet voice and sang at meetings and on like occasions. Louise Branche Tracy, the mother of Seth, died in 1817, and hers was the first interment in the cemetery. Clarissa, the oldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Tracy, was the first person to be married in the township, and her father, being justice of the peace, performed the ceremony. The third sister, Sabrina, married Horace Wolcott, of Farmington. Lineus Tracy was possibly the best known of the family, because of his many years and his business life in Warren. When .a young man he was employed by William Bell, a Warren merchant, and later by Leicester King. He finally bought Mr. King's goods and removed them to Mesopotamia, continuing in business there for several years. From early boyhood he was interested in things pertaining to war, and when in the employ of Mr. King studied military tactics from books and had a hundred wooden soldiers which he would maneuver on a board, thus practically learning his lesson. He served as lieutenant major and colonel of militia, and before that he had been corporal in the war of 1812. He was very much interested in the war of the Rebellion, helped to train the soldiers, and his sons were in that war. Among the most enterprising and capable people of Mesopotamia were Isaac Clark and his wife, Susan Gates. They reached Mesopotamia in 1804, having spent three years pre- 554 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY vious in Burton. Mrs. Clark was exceedingly ingenious. Her husband needing a suit of clothes, she sheared a bear skin and a sheep skin, carded the two together, spun the yarn, wove the cloth and made the suit. Dr. Joseph Clark was the first practicing physician in Mesopotamia, settling there in 1801. Asenatha Tracy Smith was so skilful a nurse that many persons preferred her to a physician. Her husband and she settled in Mesopotamia in 1805. Their son Edmund married Polly Lee, a daughter of one of the first settlers of Farmington. and she lived to be more than ninety years old. They lived all their lives on the land which Gager Smith first took up, and two daughters, Elmira Ensign and Amarette Reynolds, lived there also. The former had and used the black walnut loom with which the women of her family had woven for almost a century. It was hewn out and planed—not a bit of it was sawed. It is now in one of the old buildings on the farm where D. L. Smith, the brother of these women, lives. Mrs. Gager Smith was to all purposes and intentions a "new woman" of that time. She longed and begged for an oven in which to bake her bread, and when her request was not granted she made one herself out of clay, which answered every purpose. Thomas Bowyer was the first Pennsylvanian to settle in Mesopotamia. James Laird and family were also from Pennsylvania, and their descendants are well known throughout Trumbull County. They first lived in a log cabin on the C. P. Lyman farm, and there a large family of children was reared. They married and intermarried with the old families of the northern part of the county. Stephen Laird was a member of the Ohio legislature in 1881-82, the first representative that Mesopotamia ever furnished Trumbull County. Rachel Laird, who married Seth Morrison, came to Mesopotamia a little after her father's family. Her nephew, Seth M. Laird, was well known in Trumbull County, was the cashier of the Savings Bank in Warren, and his marriage with Miss Clark united two of Trumbull County's old families. The first graves in Mesopotamia were marked by stones cut by John Tomlinson. Some of them are still standing, although much defaced. The first sawmill in the township was built by John Stark Edwards in 1803. Two years later a: grist mill was built. Both these mills were run by water from the dam on Mill creek. HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY - 555 Mesopotamia had fewer distilleries than other townships. Some of the townships in old Trumbull County had as many as eighteen. Griswold Gillette was the owner of the Mesopotamia distillery, and the work was done in a log building near the center. The first tavern was built in 1823, by Dr. D. L. Newcomb, of New York. This building was later used in the- construction of another hotel, built and owned by Isaac Clark. It is stated in other histories of townships that the early settlers—that is, the women—made all the garments which the family wore, with the exception of shoes. It seems in Mesopotamia that the men among the early settlers made the shoes. This became so onerous that Hezekiah Sperry went to New Haven and spent a year learning to make shoes, and when he returned worked at his trade, traveling from house to house. He carried his own tools, made his own pegs, and somebody spun the shoe thread for him. Seth Tracy offered his house for the first school, which was held in 1803. It was taught by Samuel Foward. The next year Samuel Higlee was the teacher, and the third teacher was Jerusha Guild, mentioned before. In 1806 the first schoolhouse was built, and this was on Seth Tracy's farm. Lineus Tracy, who had only attended school six months, taught in this building successfully. The first sermon preached in Mesopotamia was by Rev. Joseph Badger. The church was organized in 1817, with eight members, and was Presbyterian. It has since become Congregational. Among the early members we find the names of Tracy, Gillette, Loomis, Guild, Laird, Morrison and Crawford. The first church edifice cost $500, and was erected by the Presbyterians in 1822. The second church of this denomination cost $2,500, and was erected in 1843. The first regular pastor was Rev. Randolph Stone. The dates of the formation of the early Methodist churches are in most cases unknown, and just when the classes became churches is not certain. The first Methodist preacher in Mesopotamia was named Daniels, and the first meeting-house of this denomination was erected in 1830. It has been twice rebuilt, the last time about ten years ago. Among the early Methodists we find the names of Sanderson, Laird, Easton, Ensign, Parker, and Smith. Mrs. Sanderson was one of the most active of the early members. The first quarterly meeting was held in Elisha 556 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY Sanderson's barn. In 1833 a great revival took place, when about fifty persons "experienced religion." Among the early elders were Mack, Ira Eddy, and William Brown. Among the circuit riders, Isaac Winans and James McMecham. There was quite a tendency toward liberal religion in the northern part of Trumbull County in the early days. There was a Universalist church, which has since become the town hall. Why this church disbanded we do not know. It is said that the interest in Spiritualism among its members weakened it. The fact probably is that in those days people who were not orthodox, and were not held in the church for the same reason that orthodox people were held in the church, did not think it necessary to deny themselves in order to keep up their organization. CHAPTER XLVIII.—NEWTON. NEWTON FALLS.` PRICETOWM. "-JESSE HALLIDAY.-DR. BRONX- SON.-NEWTON FALLS VILLAGE.-SCHOOLS.- CHURCH ORGANIZATIONS. In the early history of Trumbull County, Newton township 3, range 5, played an important part. In fact, at one time, the place now known as "Newton Falls" bid fair to rival Warren. Because of the water power, many residents of Trumbull County took their business there, although a goodly number of them later returned to Warren. In 1802 Alexander Sutherland, from Pennsylvania, settled on Duck Creek, at the place later known as "Duck Creek Corners." His wife and infant daughter were with him. He stuck some posts in the ground, covered the sides with bark, and used quilts for doors. About that same time came Ezekial Hover. He and Mr. Sutherland made the first path to the mill at Youngstown. Mr. Sutherland was an influential person in the community after the settlement was made. He was county recorder for several years. His son James carried the mail from Warren to Canton when there was no house between his father's and Warren. Many a night has this lad trudged through the woods until almost morning, carrying in a handkerchief the little mail for the settlers of Newton township. Jesse Halliday, the father of Mrs. King and Mrs. D. B. Woods, in 1803, paddled a canoe from Warren up the south line of Newton. He went aground in the rapids near Newton, and decided that if there was that much force in the water, it was a good place to stop and build a mill. He therefore put up a little shanty and the next year his mill was going. A few months later a road was opened to Warren by way of the Ledge. This is the spot which was afterwards known as "Price's Mills," or "Pricetown." It was named for the Price family. Mrs. Dr. Tod was a Miss Price, and consequently Mrs. S. L. Freeman, Mrs. J. B. Perkins, Mrs. G. B. Hucke, Mrs. McConnell, and Mrs. Jane T. - 557 - 558 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY Ratliff were his granddaughters. Charles Tod and Mrs. Ratliff are the two of this family now living in Newton Falls. Later, the name of Pricetown became Calender's Mills. This original mill of Mr. Halliday was a crude affair, and if the water was low, it would not work, so the people of Newton went to Garretsville for their "grist." However, Mr. Halliday's judgment was good, because with new machinery and improvements of all kinds this was a business center for many years afterwards. Jesse Halliday and wife, Sarah Hover (who was a daughter of Emanuel Hover, a captain in the Revolutionary war), came to Warren in 1800. He kept a tavern on Main street and owned a great deal of land in that vicinity. The Indians made his tavern their stopping place when coming to Warren to buy and trade, and he had much influence over them. After a few years he built a new tavern, which had the first brick chimney in Warren. He had a large family, all of whom are dead. Cynthia, the oldest, born in 1803, married Walter King, a jeweler of Warren, and was a lifelong resident of that town, dying at the age of 96. Phebe Halliday married Dr. D. B. Woods, a prominent physician and lifelong resident of Warren, and both are dead. Lucy Ann married a Mr. Black, Hover Halliday died in Detroit a number of years ago, and Jesse Halliday, Jr., was killed in the War of 1848 with Mexico. In 1804 Mr. Kale, Nathaniel and William Staley, and Daniel Dull, settled in this vicinity, as did Manuel Hover and Charles Adgate. In 1805 Isaac Hudson settled on what was known as "Kale creek," while in 1811 came John Hudson, and in 1814 Dr. Tracy Bronson. He immediately began practicing. Before this the people of this settlement had depended upon the doctors in Warren. Dr. Bronson was born in Middlebury, Connecticut. He graduated from the medical department of Yale College in 1813. In other parts of this work we have told of the Freeman family, of Braceville and Warren, and it was into this family that Dr. Bronson married, his wife being Mary, the daughter of Robert. She died in 1833, and the next year he married Sarah Stanwood, who lived until 1866. He served three times in the Ohio legislature, and in 1840 was a member of the Whig national convention, which nominated William Henry Harrison for president. The best known members of the Bronson family was William, the youngest son of Mary Freeman Bronson. He was brought up on the farm, but spent some time in surveying when HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY - 559 the Mahoning Railroad was built. He had a number of children. One bearing the name of Freeman died at the age of two years. For fifteen years William Bronson was justice of the peace at Newton, and was twice elected commissioner of the county. In 1806 Ezekial Hover made the first survey of the village of Newton Falls, and in 1829 Joshua Henshaw made a second one. Because of the influential family, the DuBois, it was proposed to call it "DuBoisville." In 1807 John Lane built a house there, and in 1808 Bildad Hine and family came from Connecticut. In 1808 Mr. Canfield and Harmon Ruggles built a sawmill where later the woolen factory stood, and in 1811 a grist mill was started there. It was burned down in 1817 by a drunken man, who took lodging in it. It would be well worth some student's time to go to the old papers and books which have been read by the author of this history and note how many lives, how many buildings, how many limbs, were sacrificed to men made irresponsible by alcohol. Few people thought of it then,, but we think of it now. This mill of Mr. Canfield's was not rebuilt by him, but in 1829 Horace and Augustus Stevens put up a mill there and for many years they had a large list of custom- ers and did most excellent work. Benjamin B. Yale was one of the best millwrights of the county. He worked in Braceville, at these Newton Falls mills, first for. Canfield & Ruggles, second for Canfield and Gillson, and later for John Lane. The first male child born in the township was Noah Dull ; the first female, Elsie Sutherland. Thomas McCay and Polly Moore were the first couple married. The first death was a child of Peter Decoursey. The first sermon was preached in 1808 by Rev. James Boyd. The first justice of the peace in Newton Falls was Benjamin Davison; the first in the township, Stephen Oviatt. The first church erected was at Newton Falls in 1837. First mill, built by Jesse Halliday, 1807. The first bridge was built in 1813 over the west branch of the river. The first burying ground was donated by Bildad Hine and Jonathan Jacobs, and the first interment there was Captain Reuben Bostick, brother-in-law of Mr. Hine. 560 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY The Indians were not only early around Newton township but they stayed there longer than in many of the other townships. This was undoubtedly because of the condition of the river, and the hunting in that vicinity, and because it was on the road to Salt Springs. They were sometimes troublesome, but usually could be managed, unless they had too much "firewater." It is supposed that this locality for many years had been their camping ground, because near where the Porter Flour Mill stood for many years, and where picnics and other outings were held, was a large body of stone, overgrown with grass and small trees, which at the time of the excavation for the canal proved to be an Indian burying place. Newton Falls was incorporated as a village in 1872 by T. I. Gillmer, J. N. Ensign, W. L. Hosier and C. G. Graham. The first election was held in 1872, the trustees being Lyman T. Soule, Henry Tayler, James F. Porter. H. S. Robbins was marshal C. G. Graham, clerk and treasurer. Newton Falls, as we have seen, in the early days, was a business center. It then declined, but just now is attracting a good deal of attention because the Hydro-Electric & Gas Company has bought the mill sites and erected thereon plants from which power will be used to generate electricity which will be sold to cities, villages, and individuals down the valley. Then, too, of late, the B. & 0. Railroad has shortened its route between Youngstown and Akron, not running its main line into Warren, so that passengers from Warren and vicinity must come to Newton on the branch, if they are to use this line. Among the best known of the residents of Newton Falls was John Beaver, whose biography is given in the chapter on the Bench and Bar. Judge T. I. Gillmer and T. H. Gillmer were born and spent their early lives in Newton. They are also re- ferred to in the same chapter. James F. Porter, with his sons, were among the business men of Newton. They were all greatly respected by Trumbull County residents. The first school at Duck Creek was held in a log house which stood near the sawmill. Its chimney was of stone and an improvement over the first chimneys of sticks and mud. There were no windows except holes in the logs, and the seats were. as usual, of logs. The first teacher was a young man named Brooks. The first school of which there is any record, in the village HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY - 561 of Newton Falls, was in 1812. Miss Draper was the teacher. "Hon. Eben Newton, then a beardless boy, gave young America a winter's training in this school." The schoolhouse in which he taught stood on the spot where the south warehouse was for so long. Schoolhouses began about this time to appear in different parts of the township, but there is little or no record kept of them or their teachers. The high school and then the union school were established at Newton, and this institution has always had a good standing in Trumbull County and vicinity. Among the later teachers were the late Judge E. E. Roberts and T. H. Gillmer. The latter has always been interested in schools, being the present president of the Warren city board of education. When the hardships of the scholars in the Warren schools are brought to his attention, he either smiles or narrates some of his experiences. In his day lessons were learned by heart, and he can now recite pages which he admits lie hated to learn, but which he declares he has been able to use in many ways. When pupils are given a slight shake, now-a-days, or a gentle reprimand lie calls attention to the fact that his punishment was being made to squat under the table with his head against the under side, where he was not allowed either to kneel down or straighten up. He says he can feel his back ache now when he thinks of it. No wonder that a frown or the shake of a head seems slight discipline to him. The first church organization in Newton Falls was the Associate Reformed. This society long since ceased to exist. The Baptists also occupied the house formerly used by this church, but they have disappeared. The Episcopalians held services here, and Mr. DuBois, whose work is described in the chapter on the Episcopal church of Warren, at one time lived here, and was pastor of this church. Many of the members of this Episcopal church moved back to Warren, or elsewhere, and the organization finally ceased to exist. Mr. A. S. Tayler, clerk of the Christian church, is authority for the following: "The Christian church at Newton Falls (then called Disciple) was first organized as a Baptist church in 1820. It was reorganized as a Christian church, March 12, 1828, at Braceville. It had twenty-seven members, and is said to have been the first church on the Western Reserve to adopt the Holy Scripture as the only rule of faith and practice. Worship was had in the schoolhouses until 1839, when a new house was erected in Newton Falls, near the graveyard, where services Vol. I-36 562 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY were held until June 21, 1908. Among the preachers were Marcus Bosworth, John T. Smith, Harvey Brockett, John Parker, Charles McDougle, Moses Warren, E. H. Hawley, Leonard Southmade, A. S. Hayden, H. W. Everest, J. H. Roads, Methias Christy, J. N. Smith, A. W. Ohls, O. C. Atwater, H. D. Carlton, W. 0. More, D. P. Thayer, D. J. White, 0. A. Richards, M. J. Gradle, C. M. Keene, George Musson, D. R. Moss, F. A. Nichols, E. B. Wakefield, G. P. Simons, Judson H. Ladd, J. C. Archer, and C. B. Stevens, the present pastor. The present officers of the church are : Elders, A. S. Tayler, D. J. White, C. E. Fenton, C. W. Smith ; deacons, L. L. Robbins, T. J. Morris, Henry Harnar, W. A. Davis, James Hoffman, C. H. Hernar, E. W. McClure, John Hook ; financial secretary, M. F. Hudson ; treasurer, C. W. Smith ; clerk, A. S. Tayler. The number of members, 325." The Baptists had an organization as early as 1820. Thomas Miller was the preacher, and most of the meetings were held at the house of Benoni Johnson, in Braceville. Here Marcus Bosworth and his wife were baptized. Marcus Bosworth was the early deacon ; he was also the recognized leader of the church, and, as we have noted, became one of the most efficient members. When the other Baptist churches of the county became interested in the teachings of Campbell, Rev. Jacob Osborne reorganized the church, as stated by Mr. Tayler. In 1836 Rev. John Treat preached to a number of people gathered in the house of Horace Stevens. It was decided then to organize a Presbyterian church of the congregational form. This was done December 4th of the same year, and the "Church of Jesus Christ" was the name given it. Joseph Treat and Chapin Clark were the first ministers. Among the early members were Hiram and Martha Hinman, Luther Lyman, John Payne, Amelia and Martha. Beebe, Lucy Babbitt, Amelia Stevens, also Horace Stevens, Reuben Babbitt, Henry Hudson, Emily Lyman, Susan and Margaret Patterson. After this organization the first public worship was had December 15th and the Rev. Mr. Clark preached the sermon. In 1840 preparations were made for building a house of worship. It was erected on the lot then owned by Isaac Stanley and is still standing. Professor Day, of the Western Reserve College, preached the dedicatory sermon in 1842. Robert C. Leonard and Daniel Emmerson were among the early ministers. At that time, the church officials decided not to allow any shows, "models of new inventions, ex- HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY - 563 hibition for the purpose of speaking dialogues, comedies or orations" or to allow any kind of decorations which would take the minds of the people from the service. It was also required that three-fourths of the denomination must vote in favor before a political meeting could be held there. In 1868 the form of church organization was changed to Presbyterian. In 1879 the rules governing the Congregational church were adopted, and were holding good when the last information was received in regard to it. The Methodist church was organized in 1837 with the following members : "William Earle and wife, Widow Harris, Mrs. John Hudson, and three others." The Rev Arthur M. Brown and E. J. L. Baker were the ministers who assisted. The next winter, a protracted meeting was held in the Disciple church, a number of converts being made. Eighty persons were added to the church in 1840 through the efforts of Lorenzo Rodgers and John Roberts. The church building was erected in 1843. Usually the minister who served Braceville served Newton Falls as well, until 1875. In that year the Newton church was separated from Braceville and it had a membership of forty-six. The present building was erected in 1904-05 and cost about $12,000. It was dedicated on February 12, 1905. In 1887 a fine parsonage was built, costing about $1,800. List of pastors who served Newton Falls church : E. J. L. Baker, 1836 ; A. M. Brown, 1836-37; John Crum, 1837 ; Ira Eddy, 1838 ; R. J. Sibley, 1838 ; B. O. Plimpton, 1838 ; J. W. Davis, 1839 ; Aurora Callender, 1840 ; P. D. Horton, 1840 ; James Gill-more, 1841; R. M. Bear, 1841; T. B. Tate, 1842 ; Lorenzo Rodgers, 1842-43 ; W. W. Maltby, 1843 ; Stephen Heard, 1844 ; J. J. Steadman, 1844; Lewis Clark, 1845; J. W. Lowe, 1846; E. B. Lane, 1847-48 ; Milo Butler, 1849-50 ; J. M. Plant, 1851; H. M. Loud, 1852 ; A. M. Brown, 1853-54 ; R. W. Crane, 1855 ; J. H. Tagg, 1856-57 ; G. W. Chesbro, 1858 ; J. H. Hallock, 1859-60 ; H. P. Henderson, 1861-62; J. B. Grover, 1863-64; John Graham, 1865; H. M. Chamberlain, 1866 ; Hiram Kellogg, 1867 ; E. D. McCreary, 1868 ; C. C. Hunt, 1869 ; J. R. Shaffer, 1870 ; N. C. Brown, 1871-72 ; C. V. Wilson, 1873-75 ; J. H. Starret, 1876 ; W. A. Clark, 1877; E. P. Edmonds, 1878; W. L. Davidson, 1879; John Tribby, 1880; J. J. Wallace, 1881-82 ; Samuel Crouse, 1883 ; E. B. Lewis, 1884; J. R. Jacobs, 1885-86 ; I. J. Harris, 1887-89 ; I. C. Paugh, 1890 E. E. Whittaker, 1891-92 ; W. N. Webster, 564 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY 1893-96 J. A. Wright, 1897 ; R. W. Gardner, 1898-1901; R. W. Wyrick, 1902-05 ; W. C. Cain, 1906-08. Henry Willderson, who united with the church in 1840, and J. N. Ensign, in 1842, both now deceased, were prominent and active workers in the church for many years. The old church and property was sold to the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad in April, 1903, for $7,000, after which the new church was built. The present officers are as follows : Rev. W. C. Cain, pastor; C. F. Gardner, treasurer; T. A. Beard, secretary; trustees are L. A. Robbins, David Beard, 0. R. Jones, H. P. Hoover, W. A. Hindman, J. B. Beard, P. B. Ogan, Lafayette Lowry; stewards are W. W. Klingerman, Madison Flohr, C. F. Gardner, Wade K. Gardner, T. A. Beard, G. A. McMillen, 0. O. Wolcott, Fred Cory. Rev. F. C. Becker, Rev. Huet, and Rev. Mahnenschmidt, in the early thirties, preached for the German people in Newton. These services were held in the schoolhouse, located about a quarter of a mile below the center. The first trustees were Leonard Miller, from the Lutheran church ; Jacob Feister, from the German Reformed. The original members were Jacob Feister, John Loab, from the German Reformed church; George, Jacob, and David Longenberger, Leonard, Jacob, and John Miller, from the Lutherans. We presume these men's wives were members of the church, and probably did more praying and adhered more closely to the moral tenets taught than did their lords and masters. But German men of those days loved their fraus in their way, but not as equals. This church organization built a meetinghouse in 1837, and constructed a new one in 1850. Father Becker was an efficient pastor of this church for more than fifty years. Among the ministers who preached for the German Reformed on alternate Sundays were the Revs. Mahnenschmidt, Rahhauser, Ruhl, Reuter, Grether, Fair, Perkins, and Otting. CHAPTER XLIX.—SOUTHINGTON. YANKEE SETTLERS.-THE NORTON FAMILY.-AN UNPROFESSIONAL PHYSICIAN.-WHITE.-THE SCHOOLS.-RELIGION AND ITS ADHERENTS. The owners of township 5, range 5, were Messrs. Bolles. Cowles and Ely. Bolles owned the greatest portion and it was known as "Bollestown." When the name became Southington, or why, we are unable to state. Physically, it is not an attractive town. Lying at the foot of the hills of Nelson and Hiram, with the more picturesque townships of Farmington, Champion and Braceville near it, it suffers by comparison. Its soil is heavy with clay, and towards the western edge the pudding .stone rock of Nelson ledge comes near the surface. It is so near the county seat, has no water to speak of, and only one railroad, so that it has not grown as have most townships. However, its people are prosperous, and in reading the history of the early times and in interviewing old inhabitants we find that the descendants of those who first came are the leading citizens. The first settlement was made in 1805, and the township was organized into election districts in 1817. The first families were pure Yankees, most of them coming from Litchfield county, Connecticut. In 1805 Luke Viets and his wife; James Chalker, wife and two children ; Benjamin and David Viets ; Roderick and Horace Norton, came in ox wagons and had the usual experience of the pioneer. James Nutt, a young man who followed soon the party of 1805, married Polly Viets. He was the first justice of the township, and their wedding was the first one celebrated. Edmund, the son of James Chalker, was the first child born in Southington, and as he lived but a year and a half, his death was the first. In 1810 Roderick Norton went to Connecticut, and returned - 565 - 566 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY in the fall with his bride, Olive Miller. Whether it took him all summer to persuade her to take up the hardships of pioneer life we do not know, but that he and she spent six weeks on their wedding journey, and that she was quite contented in their new home is certain. Their oldest son, Homer, lived until 1896. His house stood upon the identical spot where his father, Roderick, burned his first brush heap in 1805. During the war of 1812, when Homer was a little fellow, and there was a younger baby, Mrs. Norton spent the winter in a log cabin in this Southington wilderness, a half a mile away from the nearest cabin. At that time her only comfort was a faithful dog. She feared both wild animals and Indians, and she often burned powder, letting the fumes go through the chincks in her cabin, to scare away the wolves. She had nothing with which to scare the Indians, who, fortunately, did not molest her. Each township in the beginning had some women who acted as doctor or nurse, and Mrs. Norton was that woman for Southington. She would go at all times of day or night to any point where she was needed or sent for, and she alleviated a great deal of pain and shared in many sorrows. She reared three sons, two of whom are ministers, one a lawyer, and six daughters. Possibly she did not realize how little there was in old Trumbull County before she came here, for she brought her church letter with her, and there was no church to join. Her two youngest children were twins, Mary and Martha. The latter married Charles Wannamaker, and had the original deed of the land for the cemetery at the center. This land was bought of Joseph and Catherine Rice for the sum of $13.75. It was thought instead of taxing the residents that a subscription list better be circulated. The persons signing this paper are as follows : Roderick Norton, 50 cents ; Leonard Osborn, 25 cents ; Joshua Osborn, 50 cents ; Horace Norton, 25 cents ; Milton Osborn, 25 cents ; Eberander Crofford, 50 cents ; Isaac Hurd, 25 cents ; Ira Rose, 25 cents ; Seth Hurd, 50 cents ; Gilbert Osborn, 25 cents ; Stephen Osborn, 25 cents ; Stephen Crofford, 50 cents ; Chauncey Taft, 30 cents ; Comfort Hurd, 50 cents ; James Chalker, 50 cents ; Chauncey Curtis, 50 cents ; Daniel Maltbie, 30 cents ; Luke Viets, 50 cents. The trustees were Roderick Norton, James Hatch and Comfort Hurd. Roderick Norton's sons, Albert and Roderick Jr., were Methodist ministers, while his daughter Hannah married the HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY - 567 Rev. William S. Pond. Homer, above referred to, the oldest child, was greatly attached to his mother, and from her received his first education. When he was sixteen years old he had a severe illness which affected one of his legs and made him permanently lame and unable to do hard work. Knowing he must have some trade or profession, he learned to make shoes. He worked at this some time in different towns, and finally determined upon having an education. He went to the West Farmington Seminary, later took writing lessons of Mr. Spencer, the originator of the Spencerian method, and became so proficient in this art that he taught in several towns in Trumbull County and was one of the first teachers of this system. He not only taught in this vicinity, but in Indiana and other states as well, and one time, when at Fort Wayne, he had saved $100 from his teaching, and with this, together with his horse and some other things, he bought land in DeKalb county and Lagrange. These investments proved profitable. After this he again went to Western Reserve Seminary, and to Allegheny College; was elected justice of the peace, and finally became a lawyer. He married Emma, a daughter of Jonas Bond, of Enidburg, whose brother was at one time mayor of Chicago. They had eight children, and accumulated a goodly property. The first of the Hurd family, Seth, his wife, Thankful, and nine children, some of whom had the old fashioned names of Joy, Comfort and Freedom, came to Southington in 1808. Mrs. Hurd took Mrs. Norton's place as town nurse and unprofessional physician. The story is told that the youngest son of Mr. and Mrs. Hurd, Isaac, married Lucretia Viets and that they supposed of course they could live with the old people through the winter. But the independent Mrs. Hurd said, "When bees swarth they must take another hive," so young Isaac and Lucretia, with the help of neighbors, got together a roughly built cabin, and she went into the woods near at hand and gathered moss with which she filled the crevices. They prospered through their intelligence and industry, and their hospitable home had many guests. Here the Methodist ministers on their circuit were apt to stop, and those old Methodist ministers, whose hardships were plenty, occasionally stayed a few days over time in such comfortable homes as the Hurds'. They had four sons and one daughter, and their youngest son, Frank, for many years owned the land which his ancestors bought from the Connecticut Company. 568 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY It is recorded of Mrs. Comfort Hurd that she had many adventures peculiar to the early pioneer life. Once she and her sister, Mrs. Joy Hurd, were gathering berries, when they came upon a bear. Pretending not to see him, they walked in the opposite direction and were not harmed. Another time, when she was on her way home from school (she was a teacher) she got lost in the woods and had to stay there all night, her only companion being her horse. In the fall of 1808 Elisha Bronson, Joseph Rice and Henry White came from Connecticut. A daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Bronson was the second white girl born in Southington. Her name was Lovisa and she married Henry Joy, and both of them lived to good old age. The Bronsons had a goodly family of children, and so did their children, so they have many descendants in this township. One of these, Mrs. Lydia N. Bronson, eighty-five years old, has just celebrated her birthday. Mary E. Hurd, who prepared the chapter on "Pioneer Women," at the time of the Cleveland centennial says that Wealthy Bronson Fishel had ten children and that while her husband and her oldest son were in the war of the Rebellion she took care of seven younger children, worked one hundred and twenty acres of land, broke and drove colts, hauled wood, went to mill, etc. At the time of the writing she could walk four miles without any fatigue. Mrs. Hurd is also authority for the statement that one night when Mr. Lewis Viets was away and Mrs. Viets and their little son were alone, a wolf came and stuck its nose under the blanket. Mrs. Viets decided instead of being frightened herself to frighten the wolf, so hurled a fire-brand at it, with the desired effect. She also says that there were so few dishes and implements in that township, and so many children, that the son of Mr. and Mrs. Horace Norton used a broken knife and a shoemaker's awl to eat his meals. The family of Benjamin Hobart, who came to Southington in 1830, were members of the same family as Vice President Hobart. They had the same great-grandfather. Among the later responsible families of Southington is that of the Thorpes. Many of their descendants have been prosperous and well educated. There has been a great deal said in the different chapters about people making trips back and forth to Connecticut, but so HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY - 569 far as we know, Dennis White, of Southington, made a greater number of trips than any of the early settlers. He went seventeen times to Connecticut, traveling nearly every time on foot. His wife, Lydia, of course had unusual cares during his absence, but she had time to study and think, and she was the first temperance woman in Southington. The story told here is about the same story as we have told in other townships about the raising of buildings by the first temperance people, who refused whiskey. In most cases the men refused to raise, and old men and young boys took their places. In one case women raised the building. But in this ease the men did it themselves, grumbling all the time, however, at having to do without their grog. It is said that Mr. Rufus Rice attempted to follow the example of Mr. and Mrs. White, but the men in the crowd opposed to temperance held down on the beams instead of up, and it looked for a time as if the building would not be raised. Finally the temperance men seemed to be strongest, and when they really showed what they could do, the opposers decided to help. Southington, like townships in the lower part of the county, had a goodly number of Pennsylvania Dutch families among the settlers. They arrived early in the '30s and proved to be substantial citizens. Many of their descendants, the Hoffmans. Brobst, Stroup, Stocks, etc., are substantial citizens of the township. The townships near the county seat have naturally not grown as much as those further away. Southington has been a rural community always. It has one railroad station, and in the years past a great deal of cheese was made here. Just now the best strawberries that are brought to the Warren market come from this township. The first school in Southington was held in a dwelling about three-quarters of a mile south of the center. James Nutt was the first teacher, beginning his labors about 1814. William Knowlton early taught here. The first building which was erected for school purposes exclusively was east of the center. It was built of logs. Afterwards a brick schoolhouse stood on this spot. This is no longer in existence. In 1824 a subscription paper was circulated to obtain money for the erection of a school building. It was then stated that the building must stand at the center, or "at the corner of lots east of Asa Waldron's." Not enough money was raised at that time, and 370 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY another paper was circulated. But even this failed to bring about the desired result. Because of this agitation, the schoolhouse above referred to, having been built in 1825, was erected. As we have seen, at a very early date the schools of Warren were exceedingly good, and also at an early date the West Farmington Seminary was established. At a later date the Garrettsville high school, quite near at hand, and Hiram College but ten miles away, made it unnecessary for Southington people to establish schools of their own, as many isolated townships did. The district schools, however, were well conducted, and the pupils well prepared to enter the schools above named. About 1805 James Chalker Sr., his wife and son, together with Roderick Norton and Luke Viets, with their wives (these men were his brothers-in-law) located in Southington a little west of the center. They had come from Connecticut and stopped en route. They had nine sons and four daughters, most of whom settled in Southington and Nelson. Newton was the third son of James Jr. B is mother was Eliza Hyde, of Farmington. From his youth he was interested in education, studied and taught by turns, and when he became a lawyer and moved to Akron, he decided to give to Southington what it had never had, a good high school. He therefore erected the building. a sketch of which is here given, the lower room being used for the high school and the upper for the public library and auditorium. The township of Southington then erected on the same lot another School building for the children of the lower grades. These were completed in 1907. They stand at the center of Southington and are the pride of the inhabitants. The first church building in Southington *as used by the Presbyterians, Baptists and Methodists. Mr. Ely gave two acres of land in 1817, lying a little north of the center, for a house of public worship. He not only gave the land, but he gave the glass and the nails. Presbyterian missionaries held services in Southington at a very early date. Deacon Maltbie, his wife, and fourteen children, were much interested in these meetings, and he was the mainstay. Mr. and Mrs. Sawyer and David Hatch and wife were early members. After using the union meeting house a building was erected at the center, but it was abandoned many years ago. The Baptists in the early days erected a log house, where the Presbyterian house later stood, and held meetings there. Later they had a house a mile and a half north of the center, HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY - 571 which was afterwards moved to the northwestern part of the township. Dennis White, who made the numerous trips to Connecticut, was an earnest Baptist. After a time this organization disbanded, some going to the Methodist and some to the Disciples. About 1820 a small class of Methodists existed in Southington. Their meetings were held at the homes of Luke Viets and Joseph Rice, and later they held services in the old brick schoolhouse. Among the first members were James Sr., Orin and Joseph Chalker, Sterling Osborne, Joseph Rice, James Nutt, Joy, Comfort and Isaac Hurd, and Luke Viets. Joseph Rice was the class leader. In 1838 the neat and substantial church at the center was built. The circuit riders visited Southington early and often, and it was largely through their efforts that some of the early Baptists came into this fold. The Disciple church, in its organization, was not different in this township from other townships. When Thomas Campbell and Mr. Scott and Mr. Applegate were in the vicinity they converted Samuel Houghton and he was baptized by Mr. Campbell. A number of the former Baptists joined this congregation and it has grown steadily from that time on. The early Germans of the township organized a church in 1837. There seemed to be less division among the Southington Pennsylvania Dutch than those of other townships. They built a house the year they were organized, and this served their purpose until 1865 or '66, when they erected another one on the site of the old. Peter Mahnenschmidt was the first rector of the Reformed Congregation, and F. C. Becker of the Lutherans. Among the early Lutheran ministers were Revs. Rauhauser, Buhl and Zink. Among the German Reformed, Revs. Grether, Otting and Enghurst. The Evangelical church was the last one organized. In 1852 Dr. J. C. Bowman and his wife were members of this church, and about that time Mr. Leonard and Mr. Hampy began preaching. A year later the Rev. Mr. Staley held protracted meetings in a log house south of the corners, and the church was fully organized. Jonathan Oswold was chosen class leader. In 1854 the first church building was erected, and the new one was built in 1872. CHAPTER L.—VERNON. THOMAS GIDDINGS' NARRATIVE.-THE ARRIVAL OF THE FIRST SET- TLERS AND THEIR EXPERIENCES.-" BODILY EXERCISES.”- MYRA K. PELTON'S ARTICLE.-SAD AND ROMANTIC INCIDENTS OF PIONEER LIFE.-VERNON 'S NOT- ABLE FAMILIES.-FIRST METHODIST CLASS IN THE RESERVE.-OTHER CHURCHES.-VERNON SCHOOLS. The author of this work is fortunate in being able to present to the readers facts in regard to the history of Vernon prepared by three students of three generations. Hon. Milton Sutliff wrote, many years ago, about a case which depended upon the original survey of the township of Vernon. This case was tried before Benjamin F. Wade, and the main witness was Thomas Giddings, who went to the township of Vernon in 1798 and who for twenty-five years had not been to Warren, the county seat. He walked twenty miles to attend this case, and he was anxious to tell his whole story in order to get through in time to walk back that day. His testimony was so direct that it interested Mr. Sutliff, and later he visited this gentleman, and writes of him as follows : I was born in Hartland, Hartford county, Connecticut, 27th of January, 1776. On the 20th day of April, 1798, I had hired to Doctor Jeremiah Wilcox for six months to go to his lands in number 6, 1st range, in Western Reserved lands of Connecticut, and make some improvements. He agreed to pay me $10 a month and $10 for my expenses. I left Hartland that day with a pack on my back, and went to Litchfield in Litchfield county, and joined in company with Uriel Holmes, Levi Blakesley and Raphael Cook. The next day we went to Millford, and John Duncan, Montgomery Shalard and - 572 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY - 573 Curtis went from there to Pittsburg. From that place some went by water. Duncan and I went by land, to drive two cows. The first day we drove the cows down the north bank of the Ohio river almost three miles, to the house of a settler by name of Woods, and stayed there over night. The next day we came to Legionville, as then called, the old cabins before built and occupied by Gen. Wayne's army, but found them empty and nobody living there. We went on to Beaver, and there we found an Indian hunter by name of Brady, who was living there near the mouth of a small creek, afterwards called "Brady's Run." There was a block house on the east side of the Beaver below the falls. From there we went to a settler's cabin at the place afterwards called Greersburg, the only cabin there at that time. Between that cabin and the state line we 'round only one family, of the name of Wright. From Wright's cabin we went Youngstown, passing through the township of Poland, finding no other cabin or family. In the township of Youngstown there were then four families, a Mr. Hillman, the two Shelly families, and Martin Tidd, who afterwards lived and died in Kinsman. We stayed over night at Hillman's. I slept on his floor. A large number of friendly Indians came to Hillman's in the morning. Duncan and I left the cows with Martin Tidd. I had agreed with Holmes for when we had driven the cows to stay and attend to them until he should get there from Pittsburg, and Duncan, at Youngstown, refused to return alone; and so I went along with him. We followed down the bank of the Mahoning, and about ten miles below Youngstown we came to the cabin of a man by name of Small, who had a boat which he let us have. We then went down the river and down the Shenango in the boat to the falls of the Beaver river. It was after dark when we got near the falls, and hearing the roar of the waterfall, were afraid to go very near, and went to shore and tied the boat. We then followed down the bank of the river as best we could in the dark, and finally discerned a light and got to the cabin and learned of another house below, and making a torch, we followed a footpath there shown us to the other house, where we found Holmes and all the company, and the hands of Boardman. The next morning Holmes' company loaded their goods 574 - HISTORY OF TRUMBULL COUNTY on the boat we had brought down and we went up the river and up the Mahoning past Youngstown. to the mouth of Mosquito creek. We landed the boat about eight or ten rods from the mouth, up the Mosquito creek, on the south [east?) bank. There I tied up the boat and Holmes named the place " Giddings Landing." We made a camp there and sent back the boat to Mr. Small. Titus Hayes, one of the company, then stayed to keep the camp, and Cook, the surveyor, and .Curtis and myself went with Holmes to the southwest corner of the township of Vienna and ran a line to the north and south center line of that township on the south line. When we found the center point, we ran and marked a line for the north and south center road to the center of that township. Froth the center as fixed by Cook we then ran and marked a center line west to the west line of the township. In going west, almost a mile from the center I found a turkey nest of thirteen eggs. The hands wanted to suck the eggs, but having found the nest, I claimed the eggs, giving one to a hand, which was to see if good. I took the others, six in each pocket, and we had them cooked at camp that night for supper. Near the turkey nest, on that line, we found an oak tree, which Cook measured with his chain about as high as would be cut to fell it, and called it eighteen feet in circumference. The next day we surveyed and marked an angular road from the S. W. corner of Vienna to the center. Afterwards Holmes extended the survey from the center to the N. E. corner of Hartford. I stayed a week or ten days in Vienna with Holmes' men ; and then insisted on going on to Wilcox's land, No. 6. 1st range. Vienna was then called No. 4, 2nd range. We knew the towns then by the number and range. It was all New Connecticut, and such and such number and range. We had no names for county or township for the most part. That day, Saturday, about noon, Gen. Martin Smith, came to us at Vienna from Sharon, on horseback. He had come up the Brown and Shenango as far as Sharon, six or eight miles east of Vienna, and knowing Holmes had come on with hands, came over to see him and his hands before going to see his lands in No. 6, Vernon. He stayed with us over night. In the. night I happened to wake, and by sound of